Nicholas P. Garcia

Three decades in Georgia courtrooms

Nick Garcia earned his law degree from Georgia State University College of Law and was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in 1993. He began at a large Atlanta firm, where he spent his first years litigating workers’ compensation and injury cases on behalf of universities, telecommunications companies, manufacturers, insurance carriers, grocery chains and trucking companies.

That is an unusual way to start, and it turned out to be the most valuable training available. Defending claims teaches you exactly how the other side builds a file: which medical records they pull, which inconsistencies they look for, how reserves are set, and what actually causes a carrier to move on a number rather than try the case.

He was made a partner at the Atlanta firm of Whiteman, Smith and Hamilton, P.C. in 1998. A year later, in 1999, he left to open his own practice.

Why he went out on his own

At a large firm, the lawyer a client meets is frequently not the lawyer who handles the work. Files get staffed down. Clients call and reach an assistant, then a paralegal, then eventually someone who has to re-read the file before answering.

Nick opened his own firm so that would not happen to his clients. Today, from his office in Tyrone, he personally handles each matter from the first phone call through resolution — for individuals and small businesses across Fayette, Coweta, Clayton, Fulton, Henry and Spalding counties.

Career timeline

1. 1993

   Admitted to the State Bar of Georgia

   Nick earned his law degree from Georgia State University College of Law and was admitted to practice in Georgia in 1993, beginning his career with a large Atlanta law firm.

2. 1993–1998

   Courtroom trial experience, built the hard way

   He spent his early career litigating workers’ compensation and injury cases for universities, telecommunications companies, manufacturers, insurance carriers, grocery chains and trucking companies — learning exactly how the other side evaluates, defends and settles a claim.

3. 1998

   Named partner, Whiteman, Smith & Hamilton, P.C.

   After five years of trial work he was made a partner at the Atlanta firm of Whiteman, Smith and Hamilton, P.C.

4. 1999

   Opened his own firm

   Nick left the big-firm track to open his own practice, so that clients in Fayette County and the south metro would work directly with an experienced trial lawyer instead of being handed off to an associate.

5. Today

   33+ years, still taking his own calls

   From his office in Tyrone, Nick represents individuals and small businesses across Fayette, Coweta, Clayton, Fulton and the surrounding counties — personally handling each case from the first phone call through resolution.

Credentials & recognition

• Admitted to the State Bar of Georgia since 1993 — active member in good standing
• Admitted to practice before the United States District Court
• Admitted to the Georgia Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Georgia
• Juris Doctor, Georgia State University College of Law
• Featured speaker, Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Georgia (ICLE)
• Published author — “Defending Uninsured Employers,” Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Georgia
• Has tried more than 50 workers’ compensation cases across the State of Georgia

Reported appellate decisions

These are published opinions of the Georgia Court of Appeals — matters of public record, spanning three different areas of law:

• Gaddis v. Skelton, 222 Ga. App. 325 (1997)Personal injury
• Southwire v. Molden, 223 Ga. App. 389 (1996)Workers’ compensation
• Reininger v. O’Neil, 316 Ga. App. 477 (2012)Contract & fraud

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any future matter. Every case depends on its own facts.

Teaching other lawyers

Nick has been a featured speaker for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Georgia, the organization responsible for training practicing Georgia attorneys, and his article “Defending Uninsured Employers” was published by ICLE for that audience.

What working with him is like

You get a realistic assessment, not a sales pitch. If your case is strong, he will tell you why. If it is weak, or if you do not need a lawyer at all, he will tell you that too — it costs you nothing to hear it, and it saves you from paying for something you do not need.